Athletes
Jessica Andrade | UFC 288 Interview
We Catch Up With The Prolific Fighter Ahead Of Her Record-Setting 24th Octagon Appearance
As the chaos and shenanigans of the UFC 288 pre-fight press conference unfolded around her, Jessica Andrade still managed to radiate positivity as she sat quietly, smiled brightly and waited for her turn to take a question from the media. When that question—the inevitable speculation on whether a win over Yan Xioanan should qualify her for a title shot—Andrade politely offered her answer to UFC President Dana White instead of the inquiring reporter.
“Dana, while you’re here today, I really wanted you to have the opportunity to hear this from me: I think if I finish her—if it’s a big knockout or a submission—I need a rematch against Weili (Zhang).”
How To Watch UFC 288 In Your Country
It was almost exactly four years ago that “Bate Estaca” won the strawweight strap against Rose Namajunas in her home country of Brazil, and a long 44 months since she lost that title to Zhang Weili in the champ’s home country of China. It’s a long time to have been stewing on that loss, and she has spent most of it proving she still belongs among the elite of both the 115- and 125-pound weight classes.
Bonus Résumé | Jessica Andrade
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Bonus Résumé | Jessica Andrade
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2023 marks a full decade since Andrade’s debut in the UFC, a ten-year run that has seen her terrorize three different women’s divisions with her unmatched power and seemingly bottomless cardio. Her fight this Saturday will be her 24th under the UFC banner, a record among her peers.
But it’s strawweight—a division that allows her deceptive five-foot, one-and-a-half-inch frame its peak explosiveness—where she still feels there is business left unfinished. She still holds the records for most finishes (5), most knockouts (3) and most post-fight bonuses (8), but it’s the hardware she wants the most.
RELATED: Jessica Andrade vs Xiaonan Yan Preview
And while she rightly feels she has seen it all in terms of styles over the course of her prolific decade, in the No. 6-ranked Yan, she sees distinct similarities to Zhang’s game. A convincing win on Saturday’s main card would a go a long way in boosting her confidence that she could reclaim that strawweight title.
UFC Brazil caught up with Andrade in Newark, NJ to talk about that and much more.
UFC: Tell us what it was like to train in Brazil. You totally changed your routine.
JA: Master talked to me, and he said, "Look, kid, I've been trying
to teach you this for many years, to get good at Muay Thai. But now I need you to go to São Paulo. We have an affiliation with Master Mori and you're going to have the best Muay Thai guy, the best traditional Muay Thai specialist in Brazil. Go, believe in it, do your camp there and it'll all work out."
MORE UFC 288: Best Of Cejduo | Aljo's History | Drew Dober | Yan Xiaonan | Fantasy Stats | Gilbert Burns | Cejudo's P4P | Charles Jourdain | Epic Finishes
And I'll tell you, it really stuck in my mind. I've been training here with Bruno and it's on automatic. It's kicks and elbows, I notice I'm already throwing elbows. So camp was really good, I'm feeling very ready for this fight with my striking and my jiu-jitsu. So if striking doesn't work, jiu-jitsu will save me, right?
UFC: But why Muay Thai? Tell us.
JA: So, it's Muay Thai because my opponent is also from that fighting style, and it's something I don't use much in my fights, right? Master has always told me to clinch and use my elbows. I didn't do that in fights. And we can see there are many girls in the UFC who don't do that, who don't use their knees and elbows. We see very few of them. So he said, “Let's do that so you get the bonus of the night, let's break everything and then let's specialize in Muay Thai. And so I went.”
UFC: This will be your third fight this year. What has this marathon been like?
JA: It's been busy, one after the other. I already told Master, “For God's sake, give me some rest after this one.” But I may end up also fighting in other divisions.
Best Finishes From UFC 288 Fighters
UFC: Other divisions? There’s news!
JA: I wish, but...if it happens, I'll be ready. I really want to beat the record to become the fighter with the most fights in one year, but I don't think that's going to happen. So three will be good and then one more at the end of the year, hopefully for the belt.
UFC: What are your precautions? Because you first fought in Rio at the beginning of the year, you had a good win over Lauren Murphy, then ended up losing to Erin Blanchfield after taking the fight last-minute to replace Taila Santos. And then you had a weight cut in a division you hadn't fought in a while. What's that like? Do you have to take your foot off the gas?
JA: At first, I was a little scared of this fight being at 115 pounds and having so little time, but I was already coming off the weight cut from the fight in Vegas with Blanchfield, so I was already pretty relaxed, so it was just about keeping my diet and continuing to train. It's two hours of training in the morning, and two hours in the afternoon. So the weight cut was very easy. But I really felt my hand in the Blanchfield fight, which I had hurt in the fight with Lauren. On fight night we were able to put some bandages on to relieve it a little, and I was able to fight well but then there was that problem with my top and I ended up getting defeated. But I'm ready for this fight, I'm doing well. My hand is healed, my foot is great.
UFC: Now talk a little about your strategy for Saturday. You talked a bit about her style and how Muay Thai is important, but what are her main points inside the Octagon?
JA: Well, we've been studying a lot, and training very similar to her. We know that she likes to shoot down the line but also has some dangerous hooks; she's a quick striker. And in her fight against Mackenzie Dern she focused a lot on kicking the knees so that Mackenzie couldn't get close because she knew that Mackenzie is a jiu-jitsu and ground fighter and would need to close the distance to find her range. So she threw a lot of those little kicks. So we've been training to kick and move out of range, so I believe the strategy for this fight is to keep my style, which is to walk forward, throw elbows and put her against the cage to tire her out, get her arms tired so that she slows down and maybe I can get a knockout or submission in the second round. Anything can happen.
UFC 288 Fight By Fight Preview
UFC: We have another important fight for your division at this event: Marina Rodriguez and Virna Jandiroba. How do you see that fight going? I know that you've been in contact with both, right?
JA: Yes, I have a very good friendship with both. Marina is managed by my team, Virna is one of my best friends, so it's a very hard fight, very hard to analyze and talk about it. But speaking boldly, if I didn't know either of them, I believe that if Virna imposes her jiu-jitsu game. She's very strong; I've trained with Virna many times, so she'll probably win by submission.
But if she's not careful, Marina is a striking expert, she's been defending takedowns well in her last fights, so if Virna can't take the fight to the ground, Marina wins in the exchanges.
UFC: Jessica, winning this fight against Yan, is the belt coming?
JA: Without a doubt, that's what I want. I'm returning to my division, this is my home, this is my place, so if I win well, I really think it's the opportunity the UFC has been waiting for to make that fight. Weili doesn't have a fight booked…I'm thinking that they're waiting for the result of this fight to see if they put Jessica in there or not. I hope so.
UFC: How is Jessica going to win Saturday?
JA: With a knockout, no doubt.
UFC 288: Sterling vs Cejudo took place live from the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey on May 6, 2023. See the Final Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass
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